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Hey guys,

fc_olympic here. I hope you guys enjoy this. I am using FM 2007 with the 2nd patch.

Please note any reference to my characters background is entirely made up, and sorry about the boring intro or any parts of the story that doesn't relate to the on pitch facts, it does make up the story and forms a background. So bare with me guys.

Hope you enjoy it.

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I sat behind the rectangular table, with Denise Watts, the Exeter City chairman on my right. This wasn’t going to be easy for me. But it was time. I had just completed talks with another club, for whom I would now be manager. That’s why today would be so hard. After such a great time here at Exeter as their manager, I was now officially saying goodbye. One thing I always hated was goodbyes.

“Ladies and gentlemen, today is a very sad day for me, as I say goodbye to a club that has done so much for me. If it wasn’t for my time here, I wouldn’t be moving on. However I feel that the time has come. Before I go, I would like to thank Denise Watts, and the board here at Exeter for their faith in me when they first appointed me back in July 2006, and I would also like to thank all the staff and players who have worked under me here at this club, it has been great and I wish you all the very best. I wish Exeter City many happy and successful seasons, and who knows, I might be back again one day.”

I was moving on, just as I had when I called it quits on my playing days and went to complete my UEFA coaching badges. I had enjoyed many great seasons as a player. My most notable memories would be making my first team debut for Exeter City as a 17 year old in 1989 and in that season, the 1989/90 season helping Exeter win the English League 2 or third division as it was then and winning the English Johnstone’s Paint Trophy with Rotherham United in the 1995/96 season and then again with Carlisle the following season. I enjoyed great stints with those clubs. I was at Exeter City from 1987 (as a 17 year old) until 1994, then with Rotherham United from the 1994/95 season till the end of the 1995/96 season then I enjoyed 7 great seasons with Carlisle United from 1996 till 2003 when I retired from playing football at the age of 31. I was a striker in my playing days having played just under 400 competitive matches scoring 208 goals. I never once got to play professionally in my home town of Manchester. However, perhaps I would one day manage at my favourite club. Manchester United.

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July 2006

I was happy to be offered the job as manager of Exeter when it became available. I had started my playing career there and to start my managerial career there too would certainly have been awesome. As it turns out it did. And what a start it turned out to be.

July 2nd 2006 was the first big day. I was officially unveiled as the new Grecians manger and I got straight to work. I had a very young squad to work with, Paul Buckle, my assistant manager was my oldest player too, the other more experienced players were Rob Edwards who enjoyed many good seasons at Bristol City and Preston North End, Jon Richardson a veteran of the Exeter City Football Club, and midfielder Lee Elam. In the meantime, clubs in the division higher than ours were happily pinching my scouts, so I called the job registry at the FA and placed an ad for a scout. The board also stated that they would be looking around for both a feeder and a parent club and would be asking my recommendations out of a list they prepare when the time comes.

We started this season off with a pre season friendly at home to League Two outfit Hereford United, with the game ending in a 1-1 draw after a late equaliser 3 minutes from time from our defender Steve Tully, meanwhile veteran defender Jon Richardson picked up the man of the match award, after a solid second half. The downside to the match was the loss of influential striker Lee Philips who sustained a bad thigh strain just after half time and had to be substituted. After the game I checked on the diagnosis with physio Gavin Birch, who said Phillips would be out for up to a month.

Our next match was at home again, this time to Scottish Premier League side Falkirk. This would be the toughest of all our pre season matches I thought, and I could not have been further from the truth. We took the lead in the second minute from French import Bertrand Cozic’s 30 yard strike and extended our lead in the 8th minute when Adam Stransfield latched onto the end of a Lee Elam through ball. Falkirk did however pull one back in the 17th before I decided to take off one of my strikers and one of my midfielders and replace them with two defensive players, in the hope of defending the lead, and just that we did., the match ending at 2-1 in our favour and we had caused a huge upset.

Terk

Not an upset at all, Falkirk are rubbish :p

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Just trying to set the mood terk mate...thanks for the support though hope you enjoy the rest of the story as it comes
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July 2006 ... continued

Matches away against Welsh outfit Bangor City and English non- league side Tiverton followed. I only took 17 players with me on the road rather than a full 23 man squad that is allowed in a friendly. In the end all we needed was 17 players, as we grabbed 2-1 and 4-0 wins respectively with Jamie Mackie the standout grabbing 4 of the 6 goals himself. We were on fire. Morale and spirit were high. The lads were working as a team as one unit. That’s what I wanted from them, they were really starting to shine and show signs of good fortunes to come. That English Conference League title we were supposed to be challenging for this season was now looking a definite possibility. Both Martin Rice and Paul Jones had been outstanding in goals so far, letting in only 3 goals in 4 games between them.

Peterborough came to visit us on the 25th in a match where we won 3-1, and despite the larger winning margin, they seemed to cause more problems for us than Falkirk did. The menacing runs of George Boyd down the left hand side of the pitch were just too much for Cameroonian Patrick Ada to handle and he was very quickly replaced by Matthew Gill who was unlucky not to win the man of the match award for his performance in shutting down George Boyd. Richard Logan threw down his challenge to Jamie Mackie showing why he thought he should be the starting striker with 2 well taken goals in the 17th and 47th minutes before Peterborough pulled one back but then Chris Wright finished the opposition off 2 minutes from time.

Our last pre season friendly was an away match to Irish side Cobh Ramblers. Once again, going on the road I did not take the 23 players I was allowed. Once again I settled for a just enough squad, taking only 16 players along for the July 29th match in Cobh, from which we came home with a 1-1 result, capping off an almost perfect 4 wins and 2 draws pre season campaign.

The 31st of July 2006 was also a very important date as I stood on a podium in front of the media, shaking the hand of Blackburn Rovers manager Mark Hughes as it was announced that we would be a feeder club to the Barclays Premier League side.

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Thursday 3rd August 2006

It wasn’t long before the link was taken advantage of. I received a phone call from Hughes late in the afternoon. He wanted to send 19 year old striker Keith Barker on loan for the season.

Hughes:”Tony. How are you?”
Me:”Mr Hughes. Fine thank you. Yourself?”
Hughes:”Not too bad. I was wondering if you had a quick minute. I have just sent you an email with the bio of a young player and a few video clips of the youth team games he has been involved in. I would love it if he could come to Exeter on loan for the season. Try to play him in at least 50% of the matches.”
Me:”Yes, I am looking at the email and the video clips now. I am interested. Send him over. I will organise to have videos of the matches he plays in sent to you if you can’t watch them. Thank you.”
Hughes:”You’re welcome. I will send him over tomorrow. Talk soon Tony.”

Of course I would say yes. Any help from a player whom a premier league side said was an up and coming was well needed.

While this link with Blackburn was looking like it would end up being extremely beneficial, the current links with Tiverton and Taunton were not. Both affiliation contracts had the stipulations of us being able to send players there on loan. Neither gave us first option to buy stipulations. In our current position, we were definitely not in the position to start loaning players out. If anything we were not in the position to have any links with lower clubs at this stage. This was the reasoning behind my decision to terminate the affiliations with both clubs.

Peacemaker7

Very good start, can't wait for part 2 (And then parts 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 etc etc )

Wegason

Have to agree with Peacemaker, looking forward to this continuing.

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Thanks guys for the support, it'll be a while before part 2 begins. Let me finish part one first...

But really thanks for the support. PM7 your stuff is great to read, an inspiration to me. Wegason, I have just started reading your Seeking Salvation story. Looks good so far.

Enjoy the rest of my story guys...

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Saturday 12th August 2006

“Tomkins with the ball now...he takes a look around, no one is close enough to help him... he takes it himself, takes on one defender...only the keeper to beat...the keeper rushes out...Tomkins...right footed shot...it’s in... it’s into the top left hand corner and Exeter City. That is surely it. 4-0 and 5 minutes to go. Surely Exeter have done enough today to win the English Third Division. Surely Tomkins has done enough. What a terrific way to complete the hat trick.”

These flashbacks were becoming more and more common. Especially at night in my dreams. What could they mean. Was fate telling me that after all my happiness on the field that some sort of sadness or failure would now come? Or was fate preparing me for more success?

Exeter City vs Woking (Conference – Game 1)

My first competitive match as a manager was to be against Woking and in front of a home crowd. After 23 minutes of what looked to become a very even match, we finally took the lead. On loan Blackburn striker Keith Barker had been causing all sorts of problems for the Woking defence who were not containing him well, and he finally got the better of them and was fouled just outside the Woking penalty area. Young central midfielder Matt Bye stepped up confidently and curled his left footed free kick around the Woking three man wall and into the top left hand corner of the net. Playing such an attacking 4-4-2 with the wide midfielders playing more attacking wide midfield roles, there was always the fear to me that the Woking midfielders would get behind mine easily however I was very pleased with the way Taylor and Elam constantly got back despite moving so far up. The two of them contributing more than I expected before half time, to keep the score at 1-0 as we went into the sheds. I pulled both of them back in the second half, to more defensive midfield roles, in order to defend the 1-0 lead, and instead we ended up grabbing another goal, or so everyone thought until the referee decided to call offside against Keith Barker. In the end only the one goal was needed to see off a Woking side lacking any real strike power up front.

Exeter Goals: Matt Bye 24’
Exeter Cautions: None
Exeter Send offs: None

Man of the match: Paul Jones (Exeter – GK)

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The players were ecstatic, having won the first game of the season. The strenuous pre season training and difficult pre season friendly campaign was starting to pay off. Some of the players wanted to go out and celebrate the next night, but with only 3 days before the next game, I had no time for under par performances in training even.

I however had a little more freedom. I went down to one of the local nightspots on the Monday. Warehouse and Boxes. I remembered going there back in my playing days. I only lived a short walk from there (5 minutes away). I remembered how it always had a good mixed crowd. There were the younger generation, the 18, 19, 20, 21 year olds, the more mature more established generation and then the middle aged generation. My generation. I had become quite a favourite here in Exeter, back from my playing days, but more so over the last month with the great results the team has been recording. That would probably explain why the bouncer didn’t let me wait in the queue with the others and ushered me straight in and maybe the free drinks all night. Although, I chose not to take advantage of that.

The people there hadn’t changed since my playing days. The music was still the best in town and boy were there some stunning females and not the younger ones dressed as though they wanted to look like these popstars they see on MTV. The females between the ages of 25 and 30. There was however, one blonde that really stood out from the rest and to be honest I could probably say if there was a zapper that zapped you if you stared at a female for too long then I should have been zapped a hundred times. And boy could she dance.